Attorneys for woman accused of killing pastor say she is mentally ill

The lingering question in the 2012 shooting of a Southport pastor has never been answered.

Why?

The trial of the woman accused in the slaying started Monday in Marion Superior Court and included a recording of an interview she gave a homicide detective just hours after the shooting.

But the rambling 30-minute statement from Lori Barcroft provided little real insight into the killing of Jaman Iseminger.

Barcroft, 47, is charged with murder in the May 19, 2012, death of Iseminger, 29, who was pastor at Bethel Community Church. The case is being heard by Judge Kurt Eisgruber.

Barcroft’s public defenders said in opening arguments that she was mentally ill and not responsible for her actions at the time.

Her statement to an Indianapolis homicide detective seemed to lend at least some credence to that claim.

In the statement — which Barcroft made after the detective advised her she would be better off not saying anything until speaking with an attorney — she talked about her connection with a Colombian drug lord who had ties to the family of President George W. Bush. She said the Bush family was involved in drug smuggling and human trafficking. She said former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush had killed her grandmother.

She also made several references to herself and others in terms of numbers and letters and said she believed Iseminger was involved with the Bush family.

“Jaman is basically the cause of all of this,” she said. “He is ‘4,’ and I am ‘5.’ I am not a killer, but I am the only one who can do this.”

Barcroft also said she didn’t think she would be caught.

In testimony earlier Monday, prosecutors called two people who were at the church when Iseminger was killed and two police officers who responded to the scene.

Eisgruber recessed the trial for the day after asking now-retired IMPD Detective Michael Mitchell about Barcroft’s behavior when he first encountered her about an hour after the shooting.

“She was pretty calm,” Mitchell said.

While it’s unclear why Barcroft targeted Iseminger, she did have a connection to the church. One of her sons attended Bethel, but Barcroft never had, said Danny Carroll, a friend of Iseminger’s and a fellow minister, speaking shortly after the killing.

Tuesday’s testimony was postponed due to Marion County courts closing because of the severe cold.

The trial will not resume until mid- to late February, the judge said.